1 Interview with Peter Tyson (October 2024) and Peter Tyson internal data: between November 2023 and January 2024, average order value was approximately £1,000 with PayPal Credit and £750 for non-credit purchases through PayPal checkout.
Since 1966, customers have trusted family-owned Peter Tyson to guide them in their choice of high-quality audio and visual equipment. The business seeks to provide the finest products and brands, exceptional service and unrivalled expertise. Today, both online and in store, Peter Tyson is committed to providing genuine, thoughtful advice that ensures every choice “enhances the customer’s world with unparalleled quality and remarkable performance."
To ensure its online customers enjoy the same level of expert advice as in-store, the business has invested heavily in email, telephone and live chat support. It also produces popular YouTube videos and an extensive blog to help customers find the best product for their needs.
“We aim to be the UK’s leading provider of mid to high-end audio products,” says Commercial Director Rob Woolley as he sits down to discuss the importance of offering a seamless credit solution for today’s market.
“With hi-fi and TV equipment, people get to a certain price-point and find they want some advice on how things work best together,” Rob explains. “That’s where we come in. You can’t get that from a general, online retailer, but we put a lot of effort into our online advice and support, whether that’s live chat, email or phone.”
But there are challenges. High-end audio and video products are a discretionary purchase and, in the recent cost-of-living squeeze, customers have been delaying purchases. At the same time, technology has improved so much that people don’t purchase replacements as often as before.
“We could see people were putting off purchasing because of budget,” says Rob. “But we didn’t want to try and compete on price with the big ecommerce retailers. Instead, we saw the value of a finance offering – especially interest-free – that aligned with our all-round focus on service.”
Peter Tyson had previously tried a different credit supplier but, as Rob explains, “Customers told us the sign-up process was slow and just too hard for many. The uptake was only about 10% of transactions and we suffered a high level of cart abandonment.”
Additionally, the provider did not offer an interest-free option which Peter Tyson viewed as important to its overall USP.
“We looked at options to provide interest-free credit to customers in an easy-to-access way and, when we looked at PayPal Credit, there was obviously a huge benefit for us,” says Rob. “So many people have a PayPal account and they know how to use it. There was very little integration effort for us and the streamlined checkout process is obvious and easy for the customer.”
Peter Tyson went live with the offer of 0% interest on PayPal Credit for all instalment periods in November 2023. 0% interest instalments were offered for 6, 12, 24 or 36 month periods depending on the transaction value. The offering is prominently displayed across the petertyson.co.uk site and, importantly, against all relevant products. PayPal Credit’s dynamic messaging instantly shows the relevant credit offer (e.g. “£33.25 for 12 months at 0.0% APR”) next to the Add to Basket button.
“Our offering is interest-free credit on all products over £100, for between six months and three years. In fact, we often see competitors offering the same price but people choosing Peter Tyson because of our reputation and the offer of interest-free credit. PayPal Credit has had a big, positive impact on our conversion.”
“Offering payment by interest-free instalments through PayPal Credit has been a massive benefit for us,” Rob confirms. “We see customers going higher in their price range because of the interest-free finance. They are buying higher performance and more specialist products because they can spread the cost. Our average order through PayPal Credit is around £1,000 whereas through PayPal checkout without credit it’s just £750. That’s an increase of 33%.”
Peter Tyson has enjoyed strong revenue growth in the year and the business believes that offering PayPal Credit has been an important contributor to growth. “I think we’ve had probably a 10% increase because of PayPal Credit.”
But the most surprising result? The level of demand from customers.
“30% of online customers want to purchase through PayPal Credit,” says Rob. “Before we offered 0% interest with PayPal Credit, the average uptake of credit was just 10%.”
Peter Tyson has also seen lower cart abandonment rates as a result of the more streamlined checkout process , and “PayPal Credit is also driving new customers. People are purchasing because we have PayPal Credit.”
During the launch campaign for PayPal Credit, 1,682 new online customers shopped at Peter Tyson – a 287% year-on-year increase in new customer acquisition. The introduction of PayPal Credit also successfully re-engaged 425 previous Peter Tyson online customers.
Overall, Rob says, “The PayPal brand ties into everything that Peter Tyson stands for with our values of Quality, Passion, Expertise, Family and Innovation. The PayPal brand is widely known and trusted and PayPal Credit has been a huge benefit for the business. Overall, it’s been excellent.”
PayPal Credit: Representative 23.9% APR (variable). FCA permission may be required to offer PayPal Credit. Consumer eligibility is subject to status and approval.
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